Like an Eel Dipped in Grease
by The Nerdinator
Summary: New Heroes, S1E7. Eels invade Clarksburg and turn it into a slippery mess. Naomi suspects a new, unknown villain is behind it, but her teammates disagree. Eventually, Naomi has enough and decides to find the culprit herself - but is the ecoterrorist by the name of Fishmomma more than she can reel in?
1. Cold Open

Andy wiped his brow. "Phew! What a workout that was, right?" he asked the towering, glasses-wearing girl next to him as they left the gymnasium.

"Yeah," she panted. "I hate gym."

"Me too, Gwen. Me too. My arms feel like they're about to fall off from the lactic acid buildup. And I'm so thirsty from sweating so much."

"I could use a drink too," Gwen admitted.

They approached a water fountain. "You go first," Andy said. "You're bigger than me, so you need the water more than I do."

"Thanks," Gwen said. She walked up to the fountain and pushed the button at the base. Normally, that would make a thin stream of water spurt out the head, but not today. There seemed to be a blockage in the pipes.

Said blockage then revealed itself when the drain guard blew off from the pressure, and a black eel jumped out of the fountain and landed at Gwen's feet.

Gwen screamed.

Andy grabbed the nearest broom and began smacking the eel over the head with it.

 _Cue theme song._


	2. What is this eeling?

"...and don't forget, your diagnostic essay is tomorrow." The English teacher cleared his throat. "Since the bell's not working today, I don't think anyone will mind if I let you out early, would they?"

"We wouldn't," a boy remarked. Behind him, Naomi tapped her chin pensively.

Her teacher opened the door and shrieked "HOLY COW WHY ARE THERE SO MANY EELS?!"

Indeed, a bunch of eels were sliding across the floor, which was completely flooded and threatened to spill into the classroom.

Everyone in the classroom freaked out. All but one, that is. In the midst of the confusion, Naomi opened her backpack, exchanged her flats for the boots from her slime suit, and slipped out unnoticed.

* * *

"Sheesh," Naomi said to herself after putting her stuff into her locker. "How did this happen?"

"That's what everyone wants to know," came a voice. Naomi looked to see Ty swinging across the ceiling, using super-extended arms to keep himself off the ground. When he came to her, he sprouted an extra set of legs from his butt and lowered himself down, before shortening his arms to their proper length.

"You normally don't grow extra legs," Naomi noted.

"It's normally not so dangerous to walk on the ground," Ty replied.

"Right. So what happened?"

"Don't know. I just left math to find all of this water on the ground. At first I thought it was a simple plumbing issue, but then I saw the eels. Something weird is going on."

"Well we may as well try and look for people to rescue. I mean, it's super treacherous to walk when the floor's this slippery."

"You can start with me," they heard Abby grunt. The two turned around and found their leader crouched precariously on a desk. "There is no way you are getting me to walk in that slime," she continued.

"Um...you okay, sis?" Ty asked. "Normally you're all for wading through goop."

"Yeah...I'm not exactly wearing the right shoes for that," Abby explained, gesturing to her flats. "And I'm not wearing socks, either, so...I'm kinda stuck here."

"I thought Paige was the one who'd freak about ruining her pedicure, not you."

"That isn't my concern that at all. I have a cut on my foot I don't want to get infected. Fish ARE a breeding ground for all sorts of nasty bacteria, after all."

"Oh. Yeah, that sounds more like you," Ty concluded.

"I wasn't wearing the right shoes either," Naomi said. "That's why I changed into my slime boots before I went out."

It was then that Ty noticed that, and he facepalmed. "Why didn't I think of that?!" he exclaimed. "I waterproofed my shoes for nothing!"

"You think too hard," Abby chuckled. She did what Naomi had done, and was free to stand with the others. "Okay, have either of you established a potential cause for this?"

"Not really, no," Ty said. "This doesn't match with anything I've known _them_ to do. I've been doing this thing for almost three years and I've somehow only had a single fish-related assignment."

Naomi was thinking. "What if this isn't ACE-related?" she suddenly asked. The Archers looked at her, so she explained. "You mentioned this didn't match up with them. So what if this is someone we _don't_ know? A new villain, who's just entered the crime scene?"

"I don't think so," Abby replied. "Listen, we haven't had a new baddie since Peptos. From what I understand, the ACE basically monopolized doing evil in this city since that time to prevent another incident like that. They'd probably shut any competition down before it could even start. Besides, the fish-related assignment Ty mentioned? It wasn't a villain; some farmer's GMO hagfish escaped and started acting up."

"You're right," Ty said, remembering. "Either this is an accident, a freak nature event, or one of the villains we know is trying to branch out. Naomi's hypothesis probably isn't that supportable."

Naomi looked hurt.

"Aww, sweetie, we're not saying that it _couldn't_ be a new villain," Ty said apologetically. "But given the current circumstances, it's not too likely. Look, as soon as we find out who's doing this, I'll let you take first crack at 'em, 'kay?"

Naomi felt a little better. "Thanks Ty. Now come on. Let's suit up." And with that, using her ballerina skills, she began to gracefully slide across the slimy floor to the secret entrance, not tripping up even a little. Ty and Abby were quite impressed.

"Wow, she's good," Ty noted.


	3. Fishy Visitors

"Grossologists- oh, you're already here," The Director said. Naomi, Ty, and Abby were in the Lab. "There's been reports of eels popping up all over the city, and we need you to contain them before they overrun it."

"We know," Abby said. "They're in our school. One of them followed us here." She picked up said eel. "Lab Rat, can you analyze this guy's - or girl's, hard to tell with fish - DNA? We need to know if it's native or not."

"Sure thing," Lab Rat replied, putting on rubber gloves before taking the eel from her.

"Any leads?" Naomi asked.

"Negative. They just seemed to come from nowhere." The Director shuddered, and then the transmission ended.

"Hey, I have an idea," Ty said. "I was messing around with my powers a few days ago and created something that could help us."

* * *

 _Some time ago_

"Say, what if you used your super-strong muscles and your ability to eat anything together? I bet you could make a lot of stuff that way," Andy said during lunch. Ty and Chester were with him. Jetpack wasn't there yet. He'd gotten distracted by a piece of dust on the way down.

"Hey, good idea. Chester, how'd you like some genuine X-ray goggles?" Ty asked.

"No thanks, Ty, I'd rather NOT get cancer."

"Suit yourself." Ty pulled together some plastic bottles and soda cans, an old motherboard, and ate them. He made a face, crunching noises were heard, and soon Ty reached into his chest through an armpit and pulled out very fancy-looking set of goggles. He put them on his face and turned them on with the flick of a switch. "Well, I have good news, and I have bad news."

"What's the bad news?" Chester asked.

"I've got it on the wrong setting, so I can't see through skin, just clothing."

"And the good news?"

Ty drooled a little. "I've got a great view of Naomi's' butt." Chester looked at the reader with uncertainty.

* * *

Ty pulled out said goggles. "With these, we'll be able to see through the ground and through the pipes the eels are traveling through. And if we find where they're going..."

"...we find from where they were coming," Naomi finished. "Good thinking. You and Abby go head up, I need to talk with Lab Rat."

After the Archers left, Naomi turned to face the older teen. "Lab Rat, which of these villains do _you_ think could be putting these eels out there?"

"I don't know," Lab Rat said as he studied the eel. "We've rarely ever gotten fish-related missions. It could be Lance Boil because he's the least specialized, it could be Sloppy Joe attempting to stink up the town when the fish die, or it could be Fowler attempting to provide a food source for something related to ospreys or eagles. The fact that it's eels specifically and not some generic type of fish makes it seem like it's someone who specializes in them, but we can't say for sure just yet."

"Well, that's the thing I wanted to talk to you about. I have this feeling it's someone we DON'T know yet. The Archers don't think it's likely though."

"They've been wrong before," Lab Rat reminded her. "They thought Insectiva was causing spiders to appear everywhere the day they met Arachnidia. I'm not saying it's definitely someone we already know, but I like to be more open to suggestions."

"If it's alright with you, I think I'd like to investigate my hypothesis myself. I mean, with as many on the team as we have..."

"Say no more. I'll call Jetpack over and he'll go with you."

"Thanks, Lab Rat," Naomi smiled.

"Anytime."


	4. Sworn to the Swordfish

"That is a lot of eels," Abby grimaced as she tried to step over them. She and Ty were outside a seafood restaurant that had been overrun with the fish.

The Detective nodded in agreement. "They started coming here about an hour ago, and haven't stopped coming since. We got everyone out, luckily, but there's no telling when this is going to stop."

"Would it be possible to go inside?"

"Yeah, it would be. Try to find where these are coming from." He unlocked the door for them, only to quickly get covered in eels. "Dangit!"

The Archers walked inside. Well, Abby walked. Ty did the ceiling-swinging trick he'd done when the eels had turned up in school.

"Guess it's time to break out the goggles," Ty said. "Abby, tell me what you see."

Abby put them on and started turning one of the many dials in front of her eyes. "Nope...nope...here we go. I've got visuals of the pipes underneath the building. The eels have to be coming from there." She walked into the kitchen. "I've got something!"

Ty came over. "What is it?"

"See the sink? I'm seeing eel slime in its plumbing. That's their entry point. I want you to go in as ooze and follow the slime."

"How am I supposed to see where I'm going?" Ty asked.

"Follow the scent of the slime, duh."

Ty rolled his eyes and turned into ooze, before sliding himself down the drain. "Oh, I'm three feet down in a cramped old pipe, and it's much to dark to see. To seeee...to seeeee," he sang to himself. Abby rolled her eyes and left to follow after him.

* * *

Naomi jumped down just before Jetpack crashed into the tree. He came out of it with an eel on his head. "Fish do not belong in a tree," he concluded.

"I have to ask, why do you keep running into things? Surely you'd've seen it coming."

Jetpack shrugged. "I just don't pay attention sometimes." He looked around. "So why are we here?"

"To prove that it's not a villain we ALREADY know about who's doing this, I need to rule them out." She pointed to the abandoned, slimy building before her. "That's Joe's hideout. Normally I don't like invading their privacy, but we have no choice."

"Wait." Jetpack stood for a moment. "Joe was arrested last week."

"Oh, that's right! Your photographic robot memory!" Naomi turned to face him. "Well, if he hasn't been bailed out yet, we should check out Splatticus. Who knows, maybe someone helped him escape. C'mon, we can't cross him off the list just yet."

"Why, do we need to stand on it?"

* * *

Ty squeezed out of a sink's faucet, dripped onto the floor, and reformed. "Well, shoot," he muttered. "This isn't where they came from." An eel that was on the floor slid across his foot, and he cringed. "Where am I?"

"...I mean, I'd blame myself too if it happened to me, but seriously, it wasn't her fault."

 _Alex? But that means..._ Ty then realized he was in a girl's bathroom of his school. _Oh, nuts. Well, I always wanted to know what they looked like..._

Thankfully, Alex was in a stall, so she couldn't see him. In the stall next to her were legs ending in sneakers he instantly recognized as Paige's (because who else could afford that brand?). Paige was on the team, and while she'd be a little cross she'd be cool with it.

Alex, being a civilian, would not be.

So Ty did the logical thing and began to shapeshift.

* * *

His body became shorter and stockier. His hair turned from black to light brown. More importantly, he sprouted breasts and his groin changed its contour in his slimesuit.

* * *

"Seriously, though, she should stop moping already. It's been two hours since that happened," Paige was heard saying. The doors clicked open, and she and Alex came face to face with an orange-clad woman they'd never seen.

"A Grossologist?" Paige asked, feigning surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"Investigating these freshwater Anguilliformes," the woman replied. "They're infesting the town and are creating a major safety hazard with their slime. Tell me, citizens; how did this happen?"

"Gwen tried to get a drink after gym," Paige said nonchalantly, "but the water fountain kinda exploded and the eels started being everywhere." She jumped back as an eel approached her. "Get away from my shoes you stupid fish!"

"There are more important things in life than that," the woman groaned.

"Uh...I think I should go...don't want to interrupt your mission," Alex said. "You coming, Paige?"

"I need to wash my hands, I'll be out soon," she replied.

As soon as Alex left, Paige turned to the woman and said, "Drop the morph, Ty, I know it's you."

Ty returned to his normal body. "I think that was the first time I ever changed sex," he mused, grimacing. "It felt _really_ weird."

"Hope it wasn't someone whose identity may be compromised," Abby muttered as she entered the bathroom.

"Relax! That person died like, 900 years ago in Switzerland."

Paige and Abby glared at each other awkwardly before Ty noticed and elbowed his sister. "Uh...Paige..." Abby began, uncomfortable, "do you know...anything about who could do this?"

"I don't," Paige shrugged. "Don't think it's Joe, 'cuz fish stink more when they're dead, and he's pretty impatient when it comes to this sort of thing."

"And some eels can survive out of water for limited amounts of time," Ty mused. "What about Fowler?"

"After he attacked me I got really paranoid about owls, so I looked up a buncha stuff," she replied. "They don't seem to like fish that much. Also, he pretty much only does owls, so I doubt it's him. Um...thanks for...asking me?"

"Y-yeah...thanks for the info..." Abby muttered.

 _Progress_ , Ty thought, before turning invisible. "C'mon sis, we've gotta go back to the lab." He left the bathroom, only his footsteps belying his presence.


	5. He'll be gon' pryin'

"Fish? Nah, I don't really deal with fish," Sloppy Joe was saying to Naomi from his cell in Splatticus prison. Jetpack was staring off into space contemplating the security cameras. "Sure, when they're dead they smell, but it's a kind of smell that I feel's been done to death. 'Sides, my kind of dirt usually doesn't involve dead animals."

"Is there a reason for that?" Naomi asked.

"The eyes..." Joe shuddered. "They creep me out, man!"

"Most animals lack eyelids, so I guess you'll just have to get used to it. C'mon JP, let's try and find Lance."

"Wouldn't Joe know where Boil is?" the robot pointed out.

"Nah, part of our code of conduct is that we aren't allowed to know each other's whereabouts while working. Y'know, just in case one of us goes rogue," Joe explained, waving his hand dismissively. "Don't want a repeat of Peptos," he added gravely.

"Good to know, and thank you for your time," Naomi said, doing a little curtsy like the proper lady she was.

After they left, Joe snuck out a communicator from the rolls of fat in his gut and turned it on. "Kennedy! They're onta ya!"

"Which ones?" an unfamiliar voice asked from the other end.

"The girl in the turquoise slimesuit with orange hair, and the robot butterfly. Well, the robot not so much, he's even ditzier than I am, but they're together and they're close to figuring you out."

"Dang, they work fast. Thanks for the heads-up." The transmission ended.

* * *

"Okay, so Fowler's probably not it, and we still don't know where most of the slime trails lead," Abby addressed The Director and Lab Rat back at the lab. "Are there any other criminals that can be ruled out?"

"We'd need Chester to get a more accurate opinion on who's the culprit," Lab Rat replied. "Director, can we get to him?"

"Yes, we can. I called the mayor to issue a state of emergency, and all the schools will close early in fifteen minutes," The Director said. "Agents, you're free to keep searching. Although...we've already ascertained that Sloppy Joe is still in confinement."

"Well, that's good, but how'd that happen? Abby was following me through the pipes," Ty asked.

"Ask your girlfriend and your brother." The transmission ended.

"Lab Rat, did you authorize Naomi to go against my orders?" Abby said slowly, turning around to face the analyst.

Lab Rat cowered behind his chair. "Does it really count considering you never officially gave an order?"

"He's got a point," Ty agreed. Abby slapped him. "Ow!"

"Look, Naomi's still a rookie, okay? I just don't think she's got enough experience to deal with some of these guys." Abby sighed. "Lab Rat, get Naomi. I need to have a word with her."

* * *

"Jetpack, do you see anything over there?" Naomi asked.

"Just eels coming out of a manhole," Jetpack replied casually, not thinking it was a big deal.

"Wait, what? That could be our clue!" Suddenly, her grossometer beeped. She opened it. "Hello?"

"Naomi, what do you think you're doing?" Abby asked sternly from the other end.

"Helping you. The more of us that we have on the job, the faster we could get this over with."

Abby sighed. "Naomi, I appreciate the effort, but I have to call you back in. This isn't safe."

"Of course it isn't safe! I've known that since I came in, and I've accepted that I might not make it out in one piece."

"Regardless, I have to remind you that you often end up needing to be rescued. Don't you remember that time with Senia?"

"Abby, I respect you and all, but I really think you need to listen to me. There's a new villain out there, and if we don't stop them soon, we're going to be in really big trouble." Before Abby could protest, Naomi continued. "I know I'm not the expert here, but sometimes you really need to let other people have a chance." She ended the transmission.

"Is Abby afraid we'll mess this up?" Jetpack asked.

"Maybe. I don't know. Let's just get this over with." Naomi pried the cover off the manhole and began climbing down into the sewers.

* * *

Abby grumbled. "What's her problem?"

"She has something to prove and won't let up until she does," Ty replied, growing an extra pair of arms and twiddling his thumbs. "Kinda like you, actually."

"She's gonna get herself hurt if she keeps this up. Can't she see that I'm only trying to help her?"

"Maybe, but maybe you're taking it a little too far."

Abby sighed. "Well, I hope Chester gets here soon."

"Don't look now, but blondie's come early," Kid Rot snarked from his jar as Chester entered the lab coughing.

"Lab Rat, you _gotta_ clean the entrance sometime!" Chester wheezed.

"Why, what's wrong?" Lab Rat asked.

"Didn't you smell it? It's _moldy_! I don't know who spilled what, but they sure didn't mop it up afterwards."

"How ironic," Lab Rat mused while Abby got her crush a tissue. "You're allergic to mold, yet you were possessed by one."

"I'm more bacterium than mold," Kid Rot pointed out.

Ty stopped twiddling his thumbs. "Allergic," he said. "Abby, it isn't Lance who's doing the eels."

"How can you be so sure?"

"One, the eels are _Anguilla rostrata_ , native to this area. Lance is never that concerned about invasive species. Two, he's allergic to fish, and can't go near them without risking death."

Abby's eyes widened. "Crap, I forgot about that! So...it's a new villain after all."

"And I think you may owe Naomi an apology," Chester added. He coughed again. "Ugh..."

* * *

"Hm...these eels are subadults. Their migration to the ocean must've been interrupted, and that's why they're here," Naomi said, noticing one of the eels swimming in the sewer in the direction of the ocean.

"Subadults? Were the regular adults sick?" Jetpack asked.

"No, it's fancy talk for teenagers. Like us."

"Ohhh!"

"An astute analysis," an unfamiliar voice said. "Too bad it'll get you taken out." Naomi was darted before she could react. Jetpack tried to run over and help but slipped on eel slime and fell on his face.

"This was too easy."


	6. Fish-Slapping Dance

**AN: This fic is set on September 15, 2014.**

* * *

When Naomi came to, she found herself and Jetpack in another part of the sewers, suspended over a tank of eels. These weren't the docile, harmless American eels overrunning Clarksburg. No, these were morays, yellow with black spots, each two feet long.

"Chain morays. They bite." They looked down at a cement island nearby. They were accompanied by an unfamiliar African-American woman. The back of her hair was styled into a finlike shape. She wore a black wetsuit with the sides of her torso open, exposing neat lines of pits in her skin.

"So you're the villain behind the eels?" Naomi asked.

"The very one. Kennedy Pearlson. Codename: Fishmomma. Reverse-pescatarian since age eight."

"But how do you get anywhere if you never cross the street?"

Fishmomma facepalmed at Jetpack's stupid question, while Naomi stifled a giggle. " _Pescatarian_ , not _pedestrian_. A pescatarian is a vegetarian whose only meat they'll eat is fish. I'm the opposite; fish is the one thing I _won't_ eat."

"Ohhhh."

Fishmomma sighed. "Fish don't get enough respect. The world's first vertebrates, our very kindred, and how do we treat them? We hunt them into oblivion, trap them leagues away from their homes in improper habitats, and dump our waste right where they need to feed. And you bureaucratic heroes don't do _nearly_ enough to right mistakes like this. So I turned to villainy.

"It wasn't easy, getting the ACE to notice me. After Peptos they wouldn't accept applications. But then I did a little...tinkering with my body and well, the government _had_ to arrest me for that. That got ACE's attention, and they put me on trial."

"And I suppose the eel outbreak is that?" Naomi realized.

"Bingo. My, and I thought your wild-haired lover was the smart one."

"Ty's smarter than me, he's just...less straightforward."

"Ah. But I don't really care. Once I've caused enough mayhem, then the world will see that I, Fishmomma, will not rest until the fish reclaim the last part of the world they never had before!" She chuckled darkly.

"Sorry Fishface, but we're gonna have to force you to sleep!" Fishmomma jolted at Abby's voice as the girl goopshot her to the wall. "You two okay?" she asked.

"We're fine. Could do without the guests though," Naomi said, pointing a foot to the eel tank.

"Gotcha. Ty, that's your cue!"

Something jumped out of the water and landed on its belly. It was an _Ichthyosaurus communis_ , six feet long, navy blue with a bright green stripe along its flanks, a beige underbelly. In this new morph, Ty quickly rose to his hind flippers and shoved the tank out of the way. Jetpack cut himself and Naomi free using his claws, and brought both down gently with his wings.

"Let's see how the fish villain fares against the fish _lizard_!" Ty declared.

"Is that the only reason you chose that morph?" Naomi asked.

"Yes, it _is._ Wouldn't stop talking about it the whole way here," Abby grumbled.

Fishmomma chuckled as she peeled herself free with her fishlike slipperiness. "Do you honestly think you can defeat me?" She pulled out a staff resembling a sawfish's skeleton. "Well then. Let's dance, shall we?"

Ty and Abby lunged at her, but Fishmomma was quick to dodge them, smacking both with her staff, avoiding every hit of theirs.

"Wait a minute," Naomi said to Jetpack. "Those pits in her sides. That's what she did to herself: she implanted her own lateral lines!"

"What's that?" Jetpack asked.

"They're a series of sensory cells located on a fish's sides. Fish use them to determine changes in water pressure so they can know where friends, predators and prey are. She's using them to dodge attacks. But I think I might be able to stop her by exploiting their weaknesses."

"Like what?" Ty croaked as he slammed into the wall behind her, demorphing and oozing down.

"Lateral lines were meant for use in the water. They're not going to be as effective in air." She stood taller. "Abby, get back! You guys promised me first crack at the new villain, so make good on it!"

"You sure?" Abby grimaced as she wiped the blood from her nose.

"Positive!"

"And what makes you think you can stop me? You're a rookie, and not as strong as the Archers," Fishmomma scoffed.

"True, but there's something you should know: I'm the designated fighter for a reason."

The two women began their fight. Naomi's style was a mix of ballet and martial arts, moving so fast Fishmomma's lateral lines couldn't keep up. It was a chaotic flurry of fists.

"Should we help her?" Abby asked, while Jetpack pulled a tissue out from his chest compartment and held it to his sister's nose.

"Nah, she's in the zone now. Best not to interrupt," Ty replied. "You go, baby."

And go she did.

* * *

"Sorry I doubted you, Naomi," Abby said. The girls were in the GRS-1, while Ty (in dragon form) and Jetpack flew outside.

"Hey, it's okay, you were just worried. But it pays to listen to others every now and then, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it does." They looked outside, where the last of the eels were being rounded up so they could be taken back to the rivers where they belonged. "How many of the eels died, do you think?"

"I don't know, but let's just say Ty and I won't be kissing for a while."

Abby laughed as the four flew off into the afternoon sun.


	7. Credits Gag

At Splatticus, Fishmomma groaned. "I'm sorry, Joe, I tried to do my best..." She scowled. "That Naomi girl ruined everything!"

"She's one of the ones you gotta watch out for," Joe agreed in his cell next to hers.

"You have to watch out for _all_ of them." Lance approached them. "Come, our investors have paid your bails. And as for you, Kennedy..." Fishmomma's jaw dropped when he pulled out a wetsuit just like the one she had, only in various shades of blue. "I figured you could use a new suit now that you're official."

"Y-you mean it?"

"Of course I do. Welcome to the ACE. I'm not going to shake your hand though, I'm allergic to your talent."

"...this is gonna make meetings really awkward."

The end.


End file.
